We will all remember when, in the middle of Barack Obama’s term, one of the most ambitious measures towards a unified healthcare system was launched. The truth is that, more than ten years later, we still do not have it, although progress has been made… or so we thought. Medicaid has been wrecked by the pandemic, and more than 19 million people are about to suffer the consequences.
Medicaid, a key ally against the pandemic now going with it
Medicaid provides health coverage to millions of low-income individuals in the United States, including seniors, people with disabilities, pregnant women, and children. It is jointly funded by states and the federal government, and has experimented significant changes this year.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, temporary measures were put in place to expand Medicaid eligibility in order to help more people gain health coverage during an unprecedented public health and economic crisis. However, as the pandemic has waned, states have started rolling back the expanded coverage.
This will result in millions of low-income adults and families losing their Medicaid benefits over the course of 2024 and 2025. For many, there will be significant barriers to re-enrolling even if they remain eligible. This loss of continuous health coverage could have devastating impacts on vulnerable populations.
United States, to roll back the most ambitious Medicaid in history
During the COVID-19 public health emergency, many states expanded Medicaid eligibility to more low-income adults. However, as the emergency declaration winds down, states are starting to roll back that expanded coverage, a measure that is raising concerns throughout the US.
Several states have already started removing people from their Medicaid rolls or are planning to begin doing so soon. For example, Missouri stopped Medicaid coverage for over 200,000 people at the end of 2021. South Carolina is planning to remove tens of thousands of people this spring when the emergency period ends.
Some states like Kentucky are using passive redetermination, simply not renewing people’s coverage and waiting for them to reapply on their own. Others like Iowa are being more proactive in removing recipients, using data matches to determine if people are no longer eligible based on income or other factors.
Overall, the unwinding has begun across multiple states that had temporarily expanded Medicaid access during the pandemic. Millions stand to lose coverage they gained as states return eligibility to pre-pandemic levels, what is causing a serious problem in mostly 19 million people.
The impact on families, more serious than expected: the government is worried
One of the groups most affected by the rollback of Medicaid expansion is low-income adults. During the COVID-19 public health emergency, the federal government provided extra funding to states to expand Medicaid eligibility. This allowed states to cover adults with incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty level.
Now that the public health emergency has ended, states are beginning to roll back coverage for this population. It’s estimated that up to 19 million low-income adults could lose their Medicaid benefits in 2023. For many, this will leave them with no health insurance options at all.
Losing Medicaid would be devastating for millions of low-income adults who rely on the program. Medicaid covers doctor visits, hospital care, prescriptions, and more. Without this coverage, many will be unable to afford the high costs of medical care. They may have to skip doctor appointments or even ration medications.
Once again, we were stunned by the impact the pandemic had on our country, even though just last month was four years ago. From now on, millions of people will be left without Medicaid, or so states the public denunciation that has been spread these days. We, obviously, only echo in an unbiased manner and await the response that the White House communicates.